Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme

Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford Excerpts

Friday 20th January 2017 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Nicola Blackwood)]

On 23 December 2016, the Government published the level of payment due from members of the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) in 2017 to keep health service spend on branded medicines within the levels agreed under the scheme.

The Department of Health and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry have agreed in principle to amend chapter 6 of the 2014 PPRS in accordance with paragraph 3.4 of the scheme in order that the scheme continues to deliver its agreed objectives of predictability and stability to Government and industry, and to ensure that the cost of branded medicines to the NHS stays within affordable limits. The effect of the changes is that the payment percentage for 2017 is to be set at 4.75% for 2017, and the 2018 PPRS payment percentage will be determined by reference to the existing PPRS payment mechanism, provided that the resulting percentage falls within the lower and upper limits of 2.38% and 7.80%. The Government recognises the additional contribution being made by the pharmaceutical industry in acknowledgement of the financial challenges facing the NHS.

The Department has published a document setting out further details entitled “Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) 2014: revised payment percentages at December 2016”.

Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) can be viewed online at: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2017-01-20/HCWS426/.

[HCWS426]